Tool for installing and removing fluorescent lamps



Jan. 14, 1958 J. A. PANZICA' TOOL FOR INSTALLING AND REMOVING FLUORESCENT LAMPS 2 Sheehs-Sheet 1 Filed April 1, 1955 I aros u A. pAnzlcA BY I m V w. 6 6 w 6 6 6 J. A. PANZICA Jan. 14, 1958 2,819,922 TOOL FOO INSTALLING AND REMOVING FLUORESCENT LAMPS Filed April 1, 1955 2 Sheets-Shee t 2 INENTOR.

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A TORN YS Unie TOOL non INSTALLING AND REMOVING FLUORESCENT LAMPS Joseph A. Panzica, Brooklyn, N. Y;

Application April 1, 1955, Serial No. 498,718

3 Claims. (Cl. 294-20) This invention relates to a tool intended to facilitate the installing or removal of a fluorescent lamp or starter, when these elements are disposed at a location at which they are not readily accessible, as for example, in a ceiling fixture.

Heretofore, it has been proposed to provide tools whereby fluorescent lamp tubes can be installed or removed, the present invention being directed to an improved construction for a tool of this type, that will speed up and make easier the task of installing or removing either a lamp tube or an associated starter.

One important object of the present invention, in this regard, is to provide a device as stated which will have improved means for angularly adjusting the lamp-engaging portion thereof, thus to increase measurably the versatility of the tool as regards the installation or removal of lamp tubes, some of which are mounted on side walls of a room, and others of which are carried in fixtures depending from a room ceiling.

Another object of importance is to provide an improved means for gripping the lamp tube, which will se-v curely hold the tube during the installation or removal thereof, but which can, whenever desired, be swiftly adjusted to a tube-releasing position.

Still another object of importance is to provide means for insertion or removal of a starter, which means will be adapted to firmly grip the starter, and will, further, be sufficiently flexible to adapt the tool to any conditions so far as the placement of the starter in the fixture is concerned.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claims appended thereto, and from the annexed drawing, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Figure l is a side elevational view of a tool formed according to the present invention, portions of the handle being broken away, a supported tube being illustrated fragmentarily;

Figure 2 is an end elevational view of the tool as seen from the right of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view on line 3173 of Figure l, a supported starter being shown in dotted outline;

Figure 4 is a longitudinal sectional view through the head of the tool, substantially on line 4-4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a transverse sectional view on line 5-5 of Figure 4, the dotted lines showing one of the positions of adjustment of the lamp-gripping clamps; and

Figure 6 is a sectional view on line 66 of Figure 4 in which the two gripping clamps have been spread for the purpose of receiving or releasing the lamp tube.

With continued reference to the drawings, there is shown an elongated, tubular handle 10 about which a sleeve 12 is arranged to slide longitudinally thereof. The upper extremities of the handle 10 and the corresponding end of the sleeve 12 terminate in a substantially coterminous relation, as shown in Figure 5.

2,819,922 Patented Jan. 14, 1958 ice A tubular collar 14 having a slot 15 through its side wall and opening to one end of 14 thereof receives the upper ends of the handle 10 and the sleeve 12 therein. The sleeve 12 is provided adjacent its upper extremity with an outwardly projecting pin or stud 13 which enters the open end of the slot 15 to limit the extent to which the sleeve will project into the collar as well as preventing relative rotation of the collar about the sleeve.

A U-shaped yoke 18 has its bight portion 18 formed with a center opening 19 transversely therethrough. The bight portion 18' is secured centrally on the upper end of the collar 14, as by being welded thereto, so as to have its opposite parallel legs 18 upstanding therefrom and arranged to extend to opposite sides of the longitudinal center lines of the collar, as shown in Figure 4.

Thus, the collar 14 and the yoke 18 form a single support unit arranged at the upper extremities of the handle 10 and the sleeve 12 and operatively connected to the sleeve 12 through the slot and pin arrangement with the collar of 14 depending from the upstanding yoke 18.

i A bevel gear 16 provided with a centrally projecting stub shaft 17, formed integrally therewith, has the stub shaft 17 received in the open upper end of the handle 10 with the bevel gear 16 disposed within the yoke 13 between the upstanding legs thereof and spaced slightly above the adjacent surface of the bight portion 18'. The pin 20 extends transversely through the stub shaft 17 and through the handle 10 adjacent its upper extremity, as shown in Figure 5, so as to maintain the bevel gear 16 in the position described. Also, it will be seen that the bevel gear 16 is operatively secured to the handle 10 so as to be rotatable therewith, as will presently appear.

In the upstanding legs 18" of the yoke 18 there are formed aligned openings 26, in which is rotatably engaged the midlength portion of a shaft 28 disposed perpendicularly to the length of the handle 10. A gear 30 is fixedly secured to the shaft 28 intermediate the ends thereof, in mesh with gear 16,

At its opposite ends, the shaft 28 is partially cut away to provide angular recesses 32, and formed in the end portion of the shaft, and communicating with said recesses, are vertical openings rmeiving screws 34, said screws passing through openings formed in the lower arcuate bight 35 of a clamp, generally indicated at 36, and spaced longitudinally of the shaft 23. The clamp is of U-shape, and has integrally formed upstanding spring arms 3%. T he shaft 28, as shown in Figure 6, is supported against the bight portion of the clamp. Nuts are threaded on the screws to fixedly secure the clamps to the shaft. The clamp 36 is provided centrally intermediate its end with a generally U-shaped opening 37 opening hrough the bight portion 35 and opposite arms 38 to provide space accommodating the shaft sup porting unit comprising the collar 14 and yoke 18.

The arms 38 of the clamp diverge upwardly from the bight portion of the clamp, but adjacent their free ends are turned inwardly toward one another as shown in Figures 5 and 6, with the. extremities of the arms being turned outwardly so as to prevent damage to the lamp tube 1" to be gripped therebctween, and further, to facilitate reception of the tubes between the arms. For the purpose of further preventing damage to the tube, the several clamp arms are covered with rubber or other soft, cushioning material as at it Extending in parallelism with the shaft 28 above the Same is a flat, elongated, rectangular spreader plate 42, the opposite edges of which are in engagement with the inner surfaces of the upwardly divergent lower portions of the arms 38. Tubular pins 44 extend downwardly from the opposite end portions of the spreader bar 42 as 3 shown in Figure 4, and are vertically slidable in openings 46 formed in the shaft 28 adjacent the recesses 32 of said shaft. The tubular pins 44 are formed open at their opposite ends as shown in Figure 6, and extending through the pins are cord elements 48, said elements having on largements 50 at one end engaged with the spreader bar 42, so as to cause lowering of the pins 44 to be effective to correspondingly lower the spreader bar 42 relative to the associated clamps. The cords 48, after being extended out of the lower ends of the openings 46, converge downwardly, and are connected at their lower ends to diametrically opposite eyes 52 fixedly secured to the sleeve 12 adjacent the upper end of said sleeve. Coil springs 54 receive the pins, and are held under comtion in which it permits the resiliency of the clamp arms 38 to assert itself, to an extent suflicient to cause said arms to swing toward one another at their free ends as in Figure 5 to grippingly engage a fluorescent lamp tube T.

In use of the tool, and assuming that it is desired to remove a fluorescent lamp tube carried by an overhead fixture, the user grasps the lower end of the handle with one hand, and grasps the lower end of the sleeve 12 with the other hand. When the clamps have been positioned directly below the tube that is to be removed, a downward pull is exerted upon the sleeve 12 so that the stud 13 will ride downwardly in the slot 15 to the position shown in Figure 6. This will cause the pins 44 to be lowered against the restraint of the springs 54. As a result, the spreader bar is lowered from the position thereof shown in Figure 5, and earns the spring arms 38 outwardly to their Figure 6 position, thus to spread the free, upper ends of the spring arms a distance apart sufficient to permit said arms to receive the tube T.

Thereafter, the handle 12 is released, and the springs 54, expanding, shift the spreader bar upwardly, thus to permit the arms 38 to shift toward one another by reason of the inherent springiness thereof, to tightly grip the tube between them. At the same time the sleeve will be guided in its movement longitudinally of the handle 10 toward the yoke 18 by the stud 13 riding in the slot 15 of the collar 14, as it is urged to the position shown in Figure 1 under the yielding influence of the springs 54.

In this position, the spreader bar is spaced below the adjacent surface of the tube T, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, so that it will exert no pressure against the underside of the tube tending to shift the same upwardly out of engagement with the clamp arms 38. With the tube gripped in this manner, it can be readily manipulated for the purpose of removing the same from its associated socket.

It is desirable, in this regard, to permit angular adjustment of the clamping head of the tool relatively to the length of the handle, as for example from the full line to the dotted line position of the clamping head shown in Figure 5. This is for the purpose of facilitating the twisting of the lamps in order to lock or unlock them in the fixture sockets. For this purpose, the gears are provided, and the angular adjustment is carried out by rotating the handle 10 while holding sleeve 12 stationary. When the handle is rotated, it Will rotate the gears 16 and 30, causing a rotation of the shaft 28, and this, of course, will result in a lateral swinging of the clamps to the dotted line position as shown in Figure 5. It may be noted that in any selected angular position of the clamping head, the sleeve 12 may still be pulled downwardly, to tension the cords 48 and lower the spreader bar for the purpose of spreading the clamp arms.

Means are incorporated in the other end of the tool for facilitating the installation or removal of a starter S, and is shown in Figures 1 and 3. A coil spring 56 receives the lower end of the handle 10, and at one end is anchored to the handle. The spring extends axially of the handle beyond the lower end of the same, with the other end of the spring receiving a handle extension 58,

said other end of the spring being anchored to the handle extension and thus, constituting the spring as the only connection between the handle 10 and the extension 58. The handle and the extension are spaced apart as shown in Figure 3, thus to permit the extension to be swung angularly relative to the handle 10, to any extent desired.

Covering the spring is a flexible sleeve 68 formed of rubber or the like, said sleeve serving to confine the spring so that its convolutions will be held in line, when the spring is longitudinally flexed during angular positioning of the extension 58 relative to the length of the handle 10.

The lower end of the extension 58 projects below the adjacent end of spring 56, and is externally threaded for engagement in a complementarily threaded recess formed in a cap 62, said cap having a depending, internally threaded skirt or flange 64 in which is engaged the externally threaded, inner end of a retaining cup 66. At its outer end, the retaining cup has an inwardly directed flange 68 forming an opening of restricted diameter as compared to the outer diameter of the cup, said opening being adapted to receive a conventional starter S.

Within the cup there is confined a substantially frustroconical seat 70 for the inserted starter, formed of a resilient or elastic material such as rubber. The diameter of the small end of the seat 70 is less than the diameter of the starter S, and accordingly, on insertion of the starter, the small end of the seat 70 is expanded, against the restraint of an annular retaining spring 72 surrounding the same. As a result, when the starter is fully inserted, the spring 72, tending to contract, forces the flexible, resilient seat 70 into firm engagement with the wall of the starter, thus to securely hold the starter within the cup. A spring retainer ring 74 is disposed in the cup, to hold the spring 72 in proper position relative to the seat 70.

In use of the device for installing or removing a starter, and assuming that a starter is to be installed in a lamp fixture, the starter is first inserted in the cup in the position shown in Figure 3. Thereafter, the entire tool is reversed end for end so that the tube-clamping end is at the lower end thereof, and the starter is shifted upwardly to be engaged in the socket provided therefor in the fixture. Due to the resiliently flexible connection between the extension 58 and the handle 10, the starter can be readily manipulated to be disposed in a proper position for engagement with the socket provided therefor.

Of course, when a starter is to be removed, the device is extended up to the starter, and by proper manipulation of the handle and extension 58, the cup opening is disposed to receive the starter, after which the cup is shifted over the starter so as to be brought into gripping engagement therewith. Thereafter, the starter can be pulled outwardly for the purpose of removing the same with a. minimum of difficulty.

It is believed that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specific use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and described, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles of operation and the means presently devised to carry out said principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends any minor change in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A tool for installing and removing fluorescent lamp tubes comprising an upstanding handle, a sleeve surrounding and slidable upon said handle, a collar surrounding said sleeve, there being a slot in said collar, a stud projecting from said sleeve and extending through said slot, a U-shaped yoke having its bight secured centrally of and on the upper end of said collar with its legs projecting vertically above said collar, a shaft arranged transversely of said handle and supported in the legs of said yoke, a

clamp secured to the shaft, said clamp including a pair of convergent, spreadable, tube gripping arms, a spreader bar extending parallel to the shaft between and in engagement with the arms and supported on said shaft so as to spread said arms responsive to shifting of the bar in a direction toward the converg nt ends of the arms, and means connected between the spreader bar and said sleeve for shifting the spreader bar in said direction on slidable movement of the sleeve along the handle.

2. A tool for installing and removing fluorescent lamp tubes comprising an upstanding handle, a sleeve surrounding and slidable upon said handle, a collar surrounding said sleeve, there being a slot in said collar, a stud proiecting from said sleeve and extending through said slot, a U-shaped yoke having its bight secured centrally of and on the upper end of said collar with its legs projecting vertically above said collar, a shaft arranged transversely of said handle and supported in the legs of said yoke, a clamp secured to the shaft, said clamp including a pair of convergent, spreadable, tube gripping arms, a spreader bar extending parallel to the shaft between and in engagement with the arms and supported on said shaft so as to spread said arms responsive to shifting of the bar in a direction toward the convergent ends of the arms, and means connected between the spreader bar and said sleeve for shifting the spreader bar in said direction on slidable movement of the sleeve along the handle, including a pair of flexible members connected at one end to the bar and at their other ends to said sleeve.

3. A tool for installing and removing fluorescent lamp tubes comprising an upstanding handle, a sleeve surrounding and slidable upon said handle, a collar surrounding said sleeve, there being a slot in said collar, a stud projecting from said sleeve and extending through said slot, a U-shaped yoke having its bight secured centrally of and on the upper end of said collar with its legs projecting vertically above said collar, a shaft arranged transversely of said handle and supported in the legs of said yoke, a clamp secured to the shaft, said clamp including a pair of convergent, spreadable, tube gripping arms, a spreader bar extending parallel to the shaft between and in engagement with the arms and supported on said shaft so as to spread said arms responsive to shifting of the bar in a direction toward the convergent ends of the arms, and means connected between the spreader bar and said sleeve for shifting the spreader bar in said direction on slidable movement of the sleeve along the handle, including a pair of flexible members connected at one end to the bar and at their other ends to said sleeve, tubular pins mounted in a shaft to slide transversely thereof along lines paralleling the handle, the flexible members extending through the pins, and springs held under compression between the shaft and bar to normally urge the bar in an opposite direction.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,201,506 Rozelle et al. Oct. 17, 1916 1,210,835 Price Jan. 2, 1917 1,311,776 Rodriguez July 29, 1919 2,349,988 Quick May 30, 1944 2,360,396 Carney Oct. 17, 1944 2,393,880 Beard Jan. 29, 1946 2,584,545 Cattero Feb. 5, 1952 

